The Docks [OPEN, tw: marriage break up, drunken behaviour, violent tempers]

[willcabot]

Sitting at the end of the dock, Will's legs draped into the cold water as he finished the last mouthful of the bottle. Turning the bottle in his hand, the amber glow made him for one awful moment think of Corry's hair in the fading sunlight- throwing the bottle impulsively at the wall, he let it smash satisfyingly before pulling another bottle towards him.

He couldn't feel his toes any more, he couldn't remember how long he'd been sat here for like this. He hadn't been home yet, hadn't been to the boat just in case she was there. Everywhere he looked it reminded him of her, of the life that they'd promised each other and the life that was now in ruins. Because she loved him. Ha!

Glancing at the ring on his finger, he pressed his forehead to the rim of his drink and took a gulping breath in. Her smile as she said I do. Pulling the ring off he stumbled up and backwards before throwing it into the deep waters of the cove. Turning his back on the water, he took another few mouthfuls and heading towards the shore.

"Shit," Will swore, dropping the bottle to the floor before he turned and ran towards the end of the dock. Tearing off his shirt, he jumped into the water and dived into the deep, ice cold waters. Shifting, he swam deeper and deeper until he found the band of metal down in the dark bottom. Clutching it in his hand, he swam back to the surface before pulling himself onto the docks. Collapsing on the wooden planks, he stretched out his hand and ignored the feet of someone else standing there. "Pass me a drink, will you?"

His hand curled round his wedding ring, letting the metal bite into his palm as he stared up at empty grey skies.

Comments

[meowhistory]

"Holy shit."

And Lena thought she had a weird life, this was super more tragic than hers. "That's - I'm really sorry. But that does mean you have to be outside in the cold to feel horrible about it?"

[willcabot]

"Yeah, pretty sure it does. Everywhere smells like her," Will said. It didn't smell like her out here, it just smelled like the sea and it was hard and cold and unforgiving. It wasn't soft or loving or warm like Corry.

[meowhistory]

"I hate when you can't escape a smell, like you rubbed your fu- like it's clinging to your clothes."

Lena cast around for anything to help. "I could get you a hot coffee with some booze in it so you'd smell something else?"

[willcabot]

"I don't think coffee is going to help, she's everywhere I look. Maybe I should do what she does best, run away." Will said thoughtfully. Except he couldn't do that because he had commitments, because he'd committed to her and to this town because of it. Because he thought they were putting down roots. Together.

[meowhistory]

"Oh. Can I sit down?"

Lena never really had to deal with anyone's trauma before. Not enough friends, too much love inside the family to ever get bad. But she can't just ignore this without trying to help. "Maybe you can run away for a little bit, like the weekend?"

[willcabot]

"It's a free dock," Will said, gesturing wildly to the whole dock as if there were queues of people wanting to sit down. "Wouldn't that be nice? Want to run away with me? Make me forget all my troubles?"

[meowhistory]

"I can't, I've already been away for four years because someone turned me into a cat and my parents thought I was dead because no-one told them."

"Oh shit I didn't want to say that." She sat down. "But you totally can, right? I'm pretty sure you have the money for just going and buying what you need along the way. That's how it works, right?"

[willcabot]

"Yeah, that's how it works. If you don't have people who rely on you." Will said. He could do it. Just run. Maybe he would.

[meowhistory]

Did he even hear her? Did he care? Lena wasn't sure how she felt about being ignored like that. She had been ignored throughout high school, but that was because she had been plain and invisible. She had survived a witch attack now.

"Maybe they can rely on themselves a bit", she shrugged. "They're all grown-ups? They should be able to do that."